Democritus
~460–370 BCE · Greek (Abdera) · Classical Greece
Known for: Invented the atom 2,400 years before scientists proved him right — the Laughing Philosopher
Democritus proposed that all matter is composed of indivisible particles called 'atoms' moving through void — a theory that was essentially correct and wouldn't be validated for over two millennia. He also wrote on ethics, mathematics, and aesthetics, though most of his works are lost.
He was called the 'Laughing Philosopher' because he found human folly amusing rather than tragic (unlike the weeping Heraclitus).
Browse all 1,000 figures by category
Enable JavaScript to view the full "if they lived today" Q&A and personality profile.